Here is this week's critics' choice calendar. The Guide provides an extended listing of events in and around Madison.
Friday 4.4
NOTEWORTHY: NASA launches Apollo 6, 1968.
Through April 10. Wisconsin Film Festival), but UW Cinematheque, Union South, the Chazen Museum, the Elvehjem Building and Sundance Cinemas will provide stiff competition. A few tickets to most films are available at the door 15 minutes before show time.
UW campus, through April 6. Iron Chef Cook-off
Brink Lounge, 5 pm
In the Tenant Resource Center's annual fundraiser, cooks from the community face off for prizes and glory. The crowd get to sample the creations and pick their favorite.
Brink Lounge, 7 pm
A talented fiddler, Verch blends traditional Canadian roots sounds with other styles of world music.
Overture Center's Promenade Hall, 7:30 pm. Also Saturday (7 & 9 pm) & Sunday (2:30 pm), April 5 & 6
Just in time for the growing season, Kanopy presents Fresh. Local. Organic., celebrating the renewal of life. Friday's performance is preceded by a talk with the choreographers at 7 pm.
Overture Hall, 7:30 pm. Also Saturday (8 pm) & Sunday (2:30 pm), April 5 & 6
Guest soloist Nathan Laube unleashes the mighty Overture Concert Organ in a performance of Joseph Jongen's Symphonie Concertante. The MSO, the Madison Symphony Chorus and four soloists also take on Mozart's sublime Requiem, written on his deathbed.
UW Vilas Hall-Hemsley Theatre, 7:30 pm. Also Thursday (7:30 pm), Saturday (2 & 7:30 pm) & Sunday (2 pm), April 3, 5 & 6. Through April 18
University Theatre presents David Saar's true story of his son, Benjamin, a spirited and resilient young boy coping with the dual challenges of hemophilia and HIV. This family-oriented performance is suitable for children ages 8 and older.
UW Union South Sett, 9:30 pm
These Southern rockers are the first band to release an album on Kings of Leon's Serpents & Snakes label. With the Sharrows.
Saturday 4.5
UW Union South Sett, 1:30 pm
Gear up for Badger basketball bashes with upbeat tunes by this 11-piece "post-pop" act. They're from Oregon's capital, whose residents ought to be rooting for Madison. With Wild Ones and Hollow Wood.
Overture Center's Capitol Theater, 8 pm
The names of the five standup comedians on this national tour don't matter, because (per the title) you've never heard of them. Let's see if they can turn themselves into Somebodies of Comedy tonight.
UW Humanities Building-Mills Hall, 8 pm. Also Sunday, April 6, Chazen Museum, 12:30 pm
As part of a semester-long celebration of Jewish contributions to the arts, the UW's Mosse/Weinstein Center hosts two concerts by Fusions, a trio composed of UW cello professor Uri Vardi and two Israeli musicians: pianist Menachem Wiesenberg and oud player Taiseer Elias.
Barrymore Theatre, 9 pm
The Alabama rapper is signed to Eminem's Shady label. Be sure to add "Made in the U.S.A.," his 2011 track critiquing American manufacturing, to your pre-concert listening list.
Segredo, 10 pm
Atlanta producers and DJs Daniel Disaster and Pete H are the men behind this Dirty South bass, dubstep and house act. Their remix of Gucci Mane's "Lemonade" is as refreshing as the beverage itself. With TropKillas and Zebo.
Majestic Theatre, 10:30 pm
Featuring one of the first bluegrass outfits to add drums to their tunes, this concert should be the event of the week for jam-band aficionados. It should also draw folks looking to work off a bit of adrenaline from the Majestic's free Final Four viewing party, which begins shortly before 8 pm. With the Giving Tree Band.
UW Memorial Union Rathskeller, 10:30 pm
Inspired by feminist icons and sci-fi movies, this Seattle group have panache to spare. Dancing to their hyper surf-pop and post-punk tunes is an enjoyable way to start the weekend. With Dumb Vision.
Sunday 4.6
NOTEWORTHY: First Tony Awards presented, 1947.
UW Humanities Building's Mills Hall, 2 pm
The university ensemble has waited years to work with this concert's globetrotting, award-winning husband-and-wife guest stars: domra player Alexander Tsygankov and pianist Inna Shevchenko. With Anna Gubenkova and White Birch Folk Ensemble.
High Noon Saloon, 8 pm
The local folk-pop act has a bit of a country twang and a sweet, soulful ethos. The 2013 track "On Berlin" is a good starting point if you're new to their music. With Seasaw.
Monday 4.7
NOTEWORTHY: United Nations establishes World Health Organization, 1948.
The Art and Craft of Creating Hits in Mainstream American Media
UW Grainger Hall, 7:30 pm
Jack Knight, a producer and songwriter who has worked on tracks for Biggie, Christina Aguilera and many other stars, will drop some hints about how he turns songs into hits.
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
An Iowa farm boy turned blues and folk guitarist, Whitmore is often compared to Tom Waits but is more likely to list hip-hop artists like Outkast and Dalek among his influences. With Austin Lucas and Christopher Gold.
Tuesday 4.8
Wisconsin in Watercolor: The Farmscapes of Paul Seifert
Wisconsin Historical Museum, through Aug. 30
Seifert was a 19th-century folk artist who painted cheerful, detailed images of farms in the Wisconsin River Valley. This is the first major exhibition of his work.
High Noon Saloon, 6:30 pm
These Londoners use a trumpet, saxophone and musical saw to tie together wispy, lyrics-driven folk and jagged, rhythm-powered post-punk. With Lilies on Mars.
Majestic Theatre, 8 pm
This band of Tuareg musicians have faced political turbulence in their native Mali, but that hasn't kept them from winning multiple awards for their haunting, poetic rock and blues. (See Tour Stop.) With the Melodic.
Wednesday 4.9
Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, 7:30 pm
In this UW Center for the Humanities discussion, moderated by To the Best of Our Knowledge producer Steve Paulson, science fiction author Kim Stanley Robinson, WID director David Krakauer and literary scholar Monique Allewaert explore global concerns about the future. Winners of the Three Minute Futures flash science-fiction contest will be announced, and their entries, dramatized for radio, will premiere.
Barrymore Theatre, 7:30 pm
This three-time Grammy winner became an accomplished guitarist at a young age. Now he gives Delta blues a contemporary twist with elements of folk and jazz.
Redamte Coffee House, 8 pm
Hilton's vocals have been compared to those of Elton John, and he played Elvis in the Johnny Cash biopic Walk the Line. With Michael Shynes.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
The Slovenian electro and hip-hop artist releases music on the influential Pretty Lights label. Check out "Pardon My French" off his new album, The Age of Reason. With Branx and Gibbz.
Thursday 4.10
Maggie Mae & Heartland Country
Stoughton Opera House, 3 & 7 pm
Maggie Mae and her husband, Roger Hilliard, own Maggie Mae's Café in Oxford, Wis., where Maggie developed a following after she began performing country songs upon request.
UW Gordon Dining & Event Center, 4:30 pm
Academics Jeff Schloss and Frans de Waal discuss evolutionary theory's implications for morality, drawing on recent research into primate behavior.
Brink Lounge, 7 pm
With a big voice and a gutsy stage presence, this Minneapolis-based folk musician received top honors at the 2013 Grassy Hill Kerrville New Folk contest.
High Noon Saloon, 8 pm
In a Rolling Stone interview, drummer Justin Wilson revealed that getting punched in the face by a romantic rival inspired him to make more "in-your-face" music, which led to the formation of his Kentucky-based garage-rock act. With Holychild and Pagiins.
Majestic Theatre, 9 pm
You're in for a treat if spoken-word queen Dessa performs "Call Off Your Ghost" from her 2013 album, Parts of Speech. Plus, Caroline Smith brings dynamic vocals to her own folk and soul songs. With J. Dante.
Sister Sparrow & the Dirty Birds
Frequency, 9 pm
Performing modern gospel and soul with a fierce stage presence, this eight-piece act will appeal to fans of Grace Potter & the Nocturnals. With the Sharrows.
Segredo, 9 pm
The masked producer is a trap sensation thanks in part to speculation over his identity. Check out his scintillating track "No Stripes." With Regulators and Chris V.
Edited by Auguste and Louis Lumière
